Overnight Ratings - Wednesday 3/29/06

Last week's and last night's Metered Market Ratings came from
The Programming Insider by Marc Berman:

http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/newsletters/proginsider/index.jsp

Overnight Ratings - Wednesday 3/29/06

Metered Market Ratings

FOX: 9.9 rating/15 share (10.5/16)
NBC: 8.0/12 (7.8/12)
CBS: 7.4/11 (7.3/11)
ABC: 7.2/11 (7.6/12)
UPN: 3.3/5 (3.4/5)
WB: 1.8/3 (1.7/2)

-Percent Change From the Comparable Year-Ago Evening (Wednesday 3/30/05):
Fox: +22, CBS: +12, NBC: no change, UPN: - 3, ABC: -21, WB: -22

Fast National Ratings (Live Plus Same Day data).

-Total Viewers:
FOX: 16.04 million (16.32)
CBS: 11.15 (10.86)
NBC: 10.94 (10.84)
ABC: 10.17 (10.91)
UPN: 3.40 (3.88)
WB: 2.35 (2.21)

-Adults 18-49:
FOX: 6.4/16 (6.6/16)
ABC: 4.1/11 (4.4/11)
NBC: 3.5/9 (3.6/9)
CBS: 3.2/8 (no data)
UPN: 1.6/4 (1.8/4)
WB: 1.1/3 (0.9/2)

-Yesterday's Winners:
Deal or No Deal (NBC), Bones (Fox), America's Next Top Model (UPN),
American Idol (Fox), Lost (ABC), Criminal Minds (CBS), CSI: NY (CBS)

-Move This Show Back to 10 p.m. Pronto:
Law & Order (NBC)

-Yesterday's Losers (excluding repeats):
Out of Practice (CBS), Courting Alex (CBS), One Tree Hill (WB),
The Bedford Diaries (WB), Veronica Mars (UPN), The Evidence (ABC),
Heist (NBC)

Marc's Notes: In series-premiere news, WB drama The Bedford Diaries
was DOA, with a last-place 1.5/2 in the overnights, 1.91 million viewers
and a 0.9/2 among adults 18-49 in the 9 p.m. hour. Comparatively,
that was a decrease from struggling lead-in One Tree Hill (Overnights:
#6, 2.2/3; Viewers: #6, 2.78 million; A18-49: #6, 1.2/3 at 8 p.m.) of
32 percent in the overnights, 870,000 viewers and 25 percent among
adults 18-49. Historically, this could be the WB's worst performance in
the Wednesday 9 p.m. hour ever.

Obveeus...

Law & Order, which did not capitalize on its Deal or No Deal lead-in,

Obveeus...

averaged a 7.7/11 in the overnights, 9.40 million viewers and a 2.7/6
among adults 18-49. FYI - Law & Order on the year-ago evening scored
a 10.9/17 in the overnights, 13.49 million viewers and a 4.3/12 among
adults 18-49 at 10 p.m... NBC - what have you done???

Re: Veronica Mars: Retention out of America's Next Top Model remained
disappointing at 41 percent in the overnights, 44 percent in total viewers
and 43 percent among adults 18-49. Unfortunately, moving Veronica
Mars to Tuesday at 9 p.m. out of a repeat of Top Model will not help.
Sorry, PH!

Last week, The Evidence kicked off with a 7.2/12 in the overnights,
9.10 million viewers and a 3.4/9 among adults 18-49, and Heist a 6.6/11
in the overnights, 8.75 million viewers and a 3.0/8 among adults 18-49.
Last night:

The Evidence
6.2/10 (7.98 million) 3.1/8

Heist
5.5/9 (7.36 million) 2.5/7

Saving Courting Alex:

You might recall that I truly enjoyed the pilot of CBS' Courting Alex.
"Jenna Elfman is the next Mary Tyler Moore," I raved. "And we really
do hope that she makes it after all." Well, Elfman's Alex has made it
after all -- much too soon -- and the ideal job and perfect romance is
sadly reminiscent of when dumpy Rhoda Morgenstern left her flawed
life in Minneapolis for the suddenly perfect world of New York. We loved
Rhoda on The Mary Tyler Moore Show because she was the underdog,
but we didn't care about her as much on spin-off Rhoda because her
life was…suddenly…too perfect. And that is the problem Jenna Elfman
currently faces on Courting Alex - she needs more conflict.

Since I am not ready to jump ship (and neither should CBS, for that
matter, given that Courting Alex performed similarly to The New
Adventures of Old Christine in its former Monday 9:30 p.m. time period),
here are a few suggestions to get the show back on track:

-Drop boyfriend Scott and make Alex unhappily single (where a rash of
kooky suitors will come calling).

-Give Alex a best friend a la Mary's buddies Rhoda and Phyllis; and phase
out Julian.

-Bring in a saucy female character into the workplace to threaten workaholic
Alex a la Wendie Malick on Just Shoot Me.

-Find a new time period.

And, while you're at it, ask Jenna Elfman to put on a couple of pounds.
Make Alex flawed, and the sitcom could be worthy of a second chance.

Obveeus...

8PM - NBC - "Deal or No Deal" - 10.7/16 (9.4/14)
FOX - "Bones" - 7.2/11 (7.6/12)
ABC - "George Lopez" - 5.0/8 (5.1/8)
UPN - "America's Next Top Model" - 4.6/7 (4.8/7)
CBS - "Out of Practice" - 4.0/6
(timeslot debut, 4.7/7)
WB - "One Tree Hill" (new) - 2.2/3
(repeat, 1.8/3)

8:30PM - ABC - "Freddie" - 4.5/7 (5.2/8)
CBS - "Courting Alex" - 4.0/6
(timeslot debut, 4.4/7)

9PM - FOX - "American Idol" (results) - 16.4/24 (17.2/25)
ABC - "Lost" - 10.7/15 (10.5/15)
CBS - "Criminal Minds" - 8.3/12 (8.1/12)
NBC - "Law & Order" - 7.7/11
(timeslot debut, 7.4/11)
UPN - "Veronica Mars" - 1.9/3 (1.9/3)
WB - "The Bedford Diaries" (debut) - 1.5/2
("Gilmore Girls", repeat, 1.6/2)

Rich...

Rob Jensen...

9:30PM - FOX - "Unan1mous" - 9.0/13
(debut, 9.8/14)

10PM - CBS - "CSI: NY" - 9.8/16 (9.3/15)
ABC - "The Evidence" - 6.2/10
(debut, 7.2/12)
NBC - "Heist" - 5.5/9
(debut, 6.6/11)

Shows ranked by Adults 18-49:

FOX - "American Idol" (results) - 11.2/26
ABC - "Lost" - 6.6/16
FOX - "Unan1mous" - 6.3/15
NBC - "Deal or No Deal" - 5.4/15
CBS - "CSI: NY" - 4.6/12
FOX - "Bones" - 4.0/11
CBS - "Criminal Minds" - 3.5/8
ABC - "The Evidence" - 3.1/8
NBC - "Law & Order" - 2.7/6
ABC - "Freddie" - 2.6/7
NBC - "Heist" - 2.5/7
ABC - "George Lopez" - 2.4/7
UPN - "America's Next Top Model" - 2.3/6
CBS - "Out of Practice" - 1.7/5
CBS - "Courting Alex" - 1.7/4
WB - "One Tree Hill" - 1.2/3
UPN - "Veronica Mars" - 1.0/2
WB - "The Bedford Diaries" (debut) - 0.9/2

Shows ranked in order of ratings:

FOX - "American Idol" (results) - 16.4/24 (27.27 million)
NBC - "Deal or No Deal" - 10.7/16 (16.06 million)
ABC - "Lost" - 10.7/15 (16.06 million)
CBS - "CSI: NY" - 9.8/16 (14.73 million)
FOX - "Unan1mous" - 9.0/13 (14.43 million)
CBS - "Criminal Minds" - 8.3/12 (12.41 million)
NBC - "Law & Order" - 7.7/11 (9.40 million)
FOX - "Bones" - 7.2/11 (11.23 million)
ABC - "The Evidence" - 6.2/10 (7.98 million)
NBC - "Heist" - 5.5/9 (7.36 million)
ABC - "George Lopez" - 5.0/8 (6.57 million)
UPN - "America's Next Top Model" - 4.6/7 (4.72 million)
ABC - "Freddie" - 4.5/7 (6.37 million)
CBS - "Courting Alex" - 4.0/6 (6.35 million)
CBS - "Out of Practice" - 4.0/6 (6.29 million)
WB - "One Tree Hill" - 2.2/3 (2.78 million)
UPN - "Veronica Mars" - 1.9/3 (2.07 million)
WB - "The Bedford Diaries" (debut) - 1.5/2 (1.91 million)

Cheers,

TD (aka Rhonda)

I'm all tuned in, I see all the programmes
I save coupons from packets of tea
from The Clash's "Lost In The Supermarket"

for a good time call
www.tinyd.net
www.youtube.com/user/TinyDancer500

The Original Sesame Street Lyrics and Sounds Archive
www.tinyd.net/sesame1.html